Alternating current generator



Feb. 25, 1947. E. H. YONKERs 2A i6 56 ALTERNATING CURRENT GENERATOR Filed Dec. 15, 1943 2 sheets-sheet! FIG! INVENTOR. EDWARD H. YONKERS alxm ATTORNEY Feb. 25, 1947. EH-1. YONKERS ALTERNATING CURRENT GENERATOR Filed Dec. 13, 1943 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. EDWARD H. YONKERS ATTORN EY Patented Feb. 25, 1947 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ALTERNATING CURRENT GENERATOR Edward H. Yonkers, Chicago, 111.

Application December 13, 1943, Serial No. 514,029

3 Claims.

The present invention relates to alternating current generators and more particularly to improvements in electro-mechanical generators of the inductor type.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved electro-mechanical generator which is light in weight, eihcient in operation, simple and rugged in arrangement, compact in construction, and utilizes no rotor windings in the generation of its electrical output.

It is another object of the invention to provide an improved mechanical generator of the character described which is capable of producing a high frequency alternating current when operated at relatively low rotor speeds.

According to another object of the invention, the generator rotor speed required to produce a given frequency output with a generator of given size and weight is minimized by providing improved facilities for alternately directing the field fiux through different sections of the generator field structure.

In accordance with still another and more specific object of the invention, a high output frequency is obtained with a small rotor by providing a rotor having teeth which are alternately brought into registry with the teeth carried by two different pole pieces of the field structure, whereby the predominant portion of the fiux traversing the field structure is alternately shifted from one pole piece to the other each time the rotor periphery is advanced a distance equal to the width of one of the rotor teeth.

t is another object of the invention to utilize to the maximum the available peripheral surface of the rotor in directing the field flux through each pole piece, thereby to obtain the maximum electrical output for a generator of given size having a given number of turns in its output windings.

t is a further object of the invention to provide an improved generator of the character described which employs a magnetic field path of substantially constant reluctance, whereby hysteresis losses in the field structure and distortion of the output voltage from a desired wave form are minimized.

'It is still another object of the invention to provide a multi-phase generator which is characterized by all of the structural and operating features referred to above.

It is still a further object of the invention to provide an improved generator of either the single or multi-phase type, which is characterized by the-above-mentioned structural features, and

yet may be designed on the basis of a wide variety of rotor speeds, to produce alternating current of any desired frequency.

The invention, both as to its organization and method of operating, together with further objects and advantages thereof, will best be understood by reference to the following specification taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 illustrates in partially schematic form an improved alternating current generator characterized by the features of the invention briefly referred to above;

Fig. 2 illustrates a modified embodiment of the invention; and

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary side view of a single phase low output frequency generator characterized by the features of the present invention.

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to Fig. 1 thereof, the improved alternating current generator there illustrated comprises a magnetic field structure I0 which is made up of a plurality of E-shaped laminations of soft iron or another suitable magnetic material. These laminations are punched, stacked to the proper depth and clamped together to provide a rigid assembly in any conventional manner. The

two outer legs Ito and Iilb of the field structure It are respectively provided with opposed pole faces I6 and I8 which define different arcs of the same circle. A rotor II, also formed of stacked laminations of soft iron or another suitable magneti material, is mounted upon a drive shaft I2 for rotation relative to the pole faces I6 and I8, the axis of rotation of this rotor being substantially coincident with the common centers of the two pole face arcs IE and I8. For the purpose of causing flux to traverse the field structure I0 and the rotor II, the center leg We of this structure is utilized as an electromagnet, a winding I4 being provided thereon which is adapted for energization from any available source of direct current of appropriate voltage.

In order to direct the flux produced by the magnetized leg Ific alternately through the two legs I00, and Illb of the field structure over flux paths which commonly include the rotor I I, this rotor is provided around its periphery with teeth 20 which are arranged alternately to be moved into registry with teeth i1 provided in the pole face I6 and teeth I9 provided in the opposing pole face I8. More specifically, the rotor teeth 20 are of a uniform width which exactly equals the width of the slot separating each adjacent pair of these teeth. The teeth I! and I9, as well as the slots ea separating these teeth, are of the same width, the arrangement being such that when the teeth 253 around one peripheral sector of the rotor M are in exact registry with the teeth ll of th pole fac it, for example, the rotor teeth occupying the opposing peripheral sector of the rotor are in exact registry with the slots separating the teeth 69 provided in the pole face it. Ihe two outer legs led and till) of the field structure respectively carry windings or inductor coils ltd and l-tb, one or both of which may be suitably connected to the generator load circuit.

In considering the operation of the generator, it may be assumed that the shaft l2 and the rotor H are being rotated by a suitable driving motor in a clockwise direction as viewed in thedrawing. As indicated above, each tim the rotor ll is moved to an angular position such that certain of its teeth 25 are in exact registry with the teethll of the pole face it, the opposing rotor teeth are in alignment with the slots separating the teeth It of the pole face it. Accordingly, the reluctance of the air gap separating the rotor periphery from the pole face it is substantially less than the reluctance of the air gap separating the rotor H from the pole face l8. As a result, the predominant portion of the flux produced by magnetization of the field structure leg lilo is caused to traverse the substantially closed fiux path A which includesthe registeringteeth 2i) and Ill, and the leg lEa of th field structure. During continued movement of the rotor H and as the teeth 25. are moved out of registry with the teeth H, the opposing rotor teeth Eli are moved into registry with the teeth H) of the opposing I pole face l8. During such continued movement of the rotor the reluctance of the air gap separating the rotor from the pole face it increases, concurrently with a corresponding decrease in the reluctance of the air gap separating the rotor from the pole face H3. Accordingly, the flux traversing the leg la is caused to decrease concurrently with a corresponding increase in the flux traversing the leg lob until a point is reached at which the predominant portion of the flux traverses a second substantially closed fiux path B which includes the rotor H, the registering teeth 26 and t9, and the field structure leg 'lllb.

It will thus be apparent that as the rotor ii is driven at a high speed, the flux produced by magnetization of the center leg lflc is shifted from one of the two outer legs Illa and tub to the other each time a point on the periphery of the rotor is rotated through an arc which equals the width of one rotor tooth. In other words, if the rotor is provided with N teeth, substantially all of the flux traversing the magnetized leg I80 of the field structure will be shifted between the two outer legs lilo and it?) N times during each revolution of the rotor I i. As the flux traversing the leg lilo of the field structure is alternately increased and decreased in the manner just explained, an induced voltage is of cours developed in the winding or inductor coil 53a. Similarly, the changing flux through the leg lob of the field structure causes an induced voltage to be developed in the inductor coil or winding I3b. Assuming that the two coils l3a and H32) have the same number of turns and uniform impedance characteristics and that the reluctances of the two flux paths through the legs la and It?) of the field structure are uniformly changed in inverse and alternate senses, the voltages developed across the terminals of the two windings l3a and H32) are of equal magare moved past the unslotted pole'face.

nitude. By suitably interconnecting the two windings, the voltages thereacross may be additively combined to provide a total voltage having twice the magnitude of that across either coil considered alone. It will be understood, moreover, that the flux traversing each leg Mia and lllb of the field structure is increased from a minimum to a maximum and then decreased from the maximum value to the minimum value each time a point on the rotor periphery is rotated through an arc equaling the combined width of one rotor tooth and one rotor slot. Accordingly, a complete cycle of the alternating voltage induced in each of the windings Eta and I 32) oc curs each time the rotor l i is rotated through an angle defining the arc span of one rotor tooth and the adjacent rotor slot. Thus the frequency of the voltage produced by the generator is equal to a multiple of the rotor speed and the number of rotor teeth. For example, if the rotor is provided with 306 teeth and is rotated at a, speed of 36% revolutions per minute, the generated voltage will have a frequency of 18,000 cycles per second.

The wave form of the output voltage as developed across the terminals of the two windings ltd and Eiib is of course determined by the configuration of the teeth ll, l9 and 2t and the configuration of the slo'gs provided therebetween. By utilizing tooth and slot configurations of correct design, a voltage of true sinusoidal wave form may be produced across the terminals of each of the two enumerated windings. In this regard it will be noted that since the pole face of the field structure center leg lilo is unslotted and is of the correct width to span a like number of rotor teeth and slots, 1. e. seventeen of each in the illustrated arrangement, the reluctance of the air gap separating this pole face and the rotor ll remains constant as the rotor teeth Accordingly, the total fiuX traversing the center leg lilo of the field structure remains substantially constant. Thus each increase in the reluctance of the air gap separating the rotor H from the pole face 56 is accompanied by a corresponding decrease in the reluctance of the air gap separating this rotor fro-m the pole face I8. Conversely, each increase in the reluctance of the air gap between the rotor i l and the pole face 88 is accompanied by a corresponding decrease in the reluctance of the air gap between the rotor l l and the pole face It. Accordingly, the effective reluctance of the two parallel flux paths shunting the center leg lilo of the field structure remains constant for all angular positions of the rotor. With this arrangement, hysteresis losses and distortion of the output voltage wave form are minimized.

From the above explanation it will be understood that the pole faces 55 and E8, and the unslotted pole face of the center leg We should each span as large a sector of the rotor periphery as may be possible without unduly increasing the leakage fiux between the center and two outer legs of the field structure. Thus, by increasing the three pole face arcs to the permissible maximum, the reluctances of their respective associated air gaps are correspondingly decreased, with a consequent increase in the rate of change of the fiux density in the two outer legs Ella and lllb during movement of the rotor alternately to shift the flux from one outer leg to the other, and hence an increase in the obtainable output voltage with a generator structure of given size. It will also be understood that instead of magnetizing the center leg We of the field structure from an appropriate source of direct current, this leg may be in the form of a permanent magnet. Thus, a bar magnet formed of Alnico or the like may be suitably assembled midway between the legs of a U- shaped field structure so that the over-all configuration of the structure is exactly the same as shown in the drawings. If a permanent bar magnet is used, the device will of course be entirely self-contained, with a consequent increase in adaptability for use in field signaling operations where a source of high frequency voltage is required.

In the modified embodiment of the invention shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings, the arrangement is such that the entire peripheral surface of the rotor i! may at all times be utilized in the generation of the desired output voltage. To this end, an annular stator 24 is provided which is made up of a plurality of stacked laminations of soft iron or like magnetic material, and includes a plurality of alternately disposed field poles 25 and inductor poles 25. In the illustrated arrangement, six field poles 25a, 25b,

25c, 25d, 25c and 25 equiangularly spaced around the inner periphery of the stator 24 are provided. Each of the six enumerated field poles carries a field winding 23 and includes a pole face which spans an equal number of rotor teeth 2!] and intervening slots. Thus the field pole 25a, for example, is shown as spanning an are around the circumference of the rotor II which embraces three rotor teeth and three rotor slots. By virtue of this arrangement, the flux leaving the pole face of each field pole remains substantially constant regardless of the angular position of the rotor ll. The six inductor poles a, 26b, 26c, Zed, 26c and 25] are disposed between the field poles '25 in staggered relationship and each thereof is provided with a plurality of teeth 2?. Each inductor pole carries an inductor winding 28 in which an induced voltage is developed in response to a change in the fiux traversing the associated pole. These poles are provided with teeth 2? which are disposed adjacent the rotor teeth and are of the same arcuate width, the teeth of alternate inductor poles being offset by a distance of one tooth tip in order to permit the flux shifting operation in the manner more fully pointed out below. Thus, the inductor pole 26a is illustrated as being provided with three teeth 27a which are in registry with the slots of the rotor H when the teeth Z'lb and Elf of the two adjacent inductor poles are in exact registry with the teeth of the rotor Ii. More generally considered, the teeth 21a, 2'ic and 276 are arranged to be in registry with rotor slots when the teeth 2Tb, 21d and 27f of the associated inductor poles are in exact registry with certain of the rotor teeth 26.

In utilizing the above-described arrangement, the inductor windings 29 may be connected in series aiding relationship or may be utilized individually or in various combinations as desired. The field coils 28 are preferably connected in series across a suitable source of direct voltage. When these coils are energized, a is produced in the magnetic structure comprising the rotor and stator laminations, which flux is alternately shifted from alternate ones of the inductor poles to the intermediate inductor poles to produce induced alternating voltages in the inductor coils provided in the periphery of the rotor.

29. Thus, each time the rotor H is moved to an angular position such that certain of its teeth 20 are in exact registry with the teeth 21b of the inductor pole 262), the teeth 21a and 210 of the adjacent inductor poles 25a and 25c, respectively, are in exact registry with certain of the rotor slots. Accordingly, the reluctance of the air gap separating the rotor periphery from the inductor pole 26b is substantially less than the reluctance of the air gaps respectively separating the rotor H from the inductor poles 25a and 260. As a result, the predominant portion of the fiuX produced by magnetization of the two field poles 25a and 25b disposed on either side of the inductor pole 27b is caused to traverse the fiux paths 0 which individually include the field poles 25a and 25b and commonly include the inductor pole 2%. During continued movement of the rotor ii and as the teeth 25 are moved out of registry with the teeth 21b, others of the rotor teeth 20 are moved into registry with the teeth 27a, and Etc. During such continued movement of the rotor, the reluctance of the air gap separating the rotor from the inductor pole 2% increases, concurrently with a corresponding decrease in the re luctance of each of the air gaps separating the rotor from the inductor poles 2 m and 210. Accordingltn the flux traversing the inductor pole 25b is caused to'decrease concurrently with a corresponding increase in the fiux traversing each of the two inductor poles 26a and 23c, until a point is reached at which the predominant por tion of the fiuX traversing the field pole 25a is shifted from the inductor pole 25b to the inductor pole 26a, i. e., follows the dash line fiux path D, and the predominant portion of the fiux pro-- duced by the field pole B is shifted from the inductor pole 25b to the inductor pole In a similar manner and entirely concurrently with the flux shifting operation just described with reference to the field poles and the flux produced by the other four eld poles is, in each case, shifted from one adjacent inductor pole to the inductor pole disposed upon the opposite side thereof. It will thus be apparent that as the rotor II is driven at high speed, the flux produced by each field pole is alternately shifted from one adjacent inductor pole to the other at a rate which is determined by the number of teeth carried by the rotor ii and the speed of rotation of the rotor. It will also be noted that all of 'ie flux traversing each field pole 25 is shifted to out all of the turns of the two inductor coils 29 at opposite sides thereof, each time the rotor is rotated through an angle defining one rotor tooth to, i. e., half of the angle E.

In order to adapt the above-described principle of offsetting the inductor poles to the generation of low frequency alternating current, the arrangement illustrated in Fig. 3 of the drawings may be employed. Essentially, the structure there disclosed is the same as that described above With reference to Fig. 2 of the drawings, except that the number of rotor teeth 28 provided in the periphery of the rotor ii is considerably reduced in order to provide for the desired lower output fraquency, and the arrangement of the inductor poles at and field poles 3? around the inner periphery of the stator has been correspondingiy modified to accommodate the reduction in the number of rotor teeth. In this regard it is reiterated that the output frequency of the generator for a given rotor speed is determined entirely by the number of teeth In the Z7 Fig. 3 arrangement, the pole face of each field pole 36 is of the correct width to span the arc defined by one large tooth and tooth slotat the periphery of the rotor i E, the width of the face of each inductor pole spans an are equal to thewidth of a rotor tooth or slot and each inductor pole is displaced from each adjacent field pole by an are equal to the width of one rotor tooth or slot. The field winding 33 comprises series connected field coils which surround the respective field poles (is and are so arranged that the pole face of each field pole has the same magnetic polarity. The inductor winding, on the other hand, comprises coils individual to the inductor poles 31, which are alternately connected in reverse polarity so that the induced voltages produced therein are in phase with each other. In this regard it will be noted that, due to the angular displacement of one rotor tooth or slot as between alternate ones of the inductor poles 31, the increase and decay of flux through the pole 31b, for example, is during rotation of the rotor H, displaced 180 degrees in phase from the corresponding flux cycle change through each of the adjacent inductor poles 37a and 370. Accordingly, by providing reversely wound but series connected coils upon alternate ones of the inductor poles 3?, the induced voltages developed therein are brought into phase so that the total generated voltage is equal to the al ebraic sum of the induced voltages.

Aside from the differences just pointed out, the mode of operation of the structure shown in Fig. 3 is exactly the same as described above with reference to the generator shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings. From this description it will be understood that by suitably offsetting th inductor poles 31 relative to each other to provide an additional phase displacement between the induced voltages developed in the inductor coils carried thereby and by providing appropriate connections between the inductor coils, a multiphase voltage output may be obtained. Thus, if a three phase output is desired, each one-third of the inductor poles may be offset by an angle equal to one-third of the angle E relative to the remaining twothirds of the inductor poles, in the same manner as was described above with reference to the arrangement shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings.

From the above explanation it will be appar out that in each of the structures shown in Figs. 2 and 3 of the drawings, the paths traversed by the fiux generated by each field pole are extremely short and hence are of low reluctance, thus enhancing the efficiency of the generator. Further, substantially all of the iron in the rotor and stator structures is usefully employed so that the amount of iron required to produce a given volt-ampere output is reduced to a minimum. In this connection it may be pointed out that only the outer peripheral portion of the rotor ll need be made up of iron laminations since the flux will not penetrate the rotor to any substantial depth. Accordingly, an annular rotor structur may be used which is spoke supported upon the rotor shaft. The desired voltage wave form can, of

a course, be obtained by appropriate design of the inductor pole and rotor teeth. Further, there are no limitations upon the speed at which the generator may be designed to operate to produce a given output frequency. Thus, this frequency is determined solely by the number of teeth provided in the periphery of the rotor l I and has no relationship whatever to the number of field poles or inductor poles which may be provided. Ac-

cordingly, if it is desired to produce a generator which will supply a predetermined frequency output when operated at a given speed, it is only necessary to calculate the number of rotor teeth required. From this calculation and the known desired load rating, the size of the rotor teeth and hence the size of the rotor as a whole, together with the size of the stator, may readily be determined.

While different embodiments of the invention have been disclosed, it will be understood that various modifications may be made therein, which are within the true spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

' 1. An alternating current generator comprising a stator provided with a pair of inductor poles each having a plurality of teeth and with a field pole disposed between said inductor poles, a rotor provided with a toothed periphery rotatable relative to said toothed inductor poles, the teeth of said inductor poles being so-staggered relative to each other that the teeth of said rotor are alternately brought into registry with the teeth of one inductor pole and then theteeth of the other inductor pole, whereby substantially all of the flux produced by said field pole is alternately shifted back and forth between said inductor poles, said field pole being provided with an unslotted pole face spanning an equal number of the tooth tips and slots of said rotor, whereby the reluctance of the magnetic circuit extending through said rotor and inductor poles between the magnetic poles of said field pole remains constant regardless of the relative angular positions of'said rotor and stator, and inductor pickup means embracing a part of said stator to be excited by the variations in the flux traversal of at least one of said inductor poles resulting from rotation of said rotor.

2. An alternating current generator comprising a substantially U-shaped stator provided with toothed leg extremities, a rotor disposed between said leg extremities and provided with a toothed periphery rotatable relative to said toothed leg extremities, magnet means disposed between the legs of said stator and said rotor, theteeth of said leg extremities being so staggered relative'to each other that the teeth of said rotor are alternately brought into registry with the teeth of one leg extremity and then the teeth of the other leg extremity, whereby substantially all of the flux produced by said magnet means is alternately shifted back and forth between the legs of said stator during rotation of said rotor, and inductor pickup means embracing a part of said stator to be excited by the variations in the flux traversal of at least one of the legs of said stator resulting from rotation of said rotor.

3. An alternating current generator comprising a substantially U-shaped stator provided with toothed leg extremities which face each other, a rotor disposed between said leg extremities and provided with a toothed periphery rotatable relative to said toothed leg extremities, magnet means disposed between the legs of said stator and extending between the base of said stator and said rotor, the teeth of said leg extremities being so staggered relative to each other that the teeth of said rotor are alternately brought into registry with the teeth of one leg extremity and then the teeth of the other leg extremity, whereby substantially all of the flux produced by said magnet means is alternately shifted back and forth between the legs of said stator during rotation of said rotor, said magnet means being provided with least one of the legs of said stator resulting from m rotation of said rotor.

EDWARD H. YONKERS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the 5 file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,160,087 Neuland Nov. 9, 1915 1,388,324 Neuland Apr. 27, 1920 

